Hood for bottle stopper



June 29, 1965 M. J. COVEN ETAL 3,191,790

HOOD FOR BOTTLE STQPPER Filed Jan. 11, 1963 24 t]! 17 F a 22 12 I I 10h' "-H 7 w Fl6.2

-INVENTORS 440N205 J. conw agree amass United States Patent Office3,191,790 Patented June 29, 1965 3,191,790 H90!) FOR BOTTLE STOPPERMonroe J. Coven and Chester C. Moss, Brooklyn, N.Y., assignors toMonarch Wine Co., Inc, Brooklyn, N.Y., a corporation of New York FiledJan. 11, 1963, Ser. No. 250,882 2 Claims. (Cl. 215-433) This inventionrelates to a hood or cover for sealing and removably securing closuresto bottles containing beverages under gas pressure, for examplechampagne, sparkling or carbonated wines, etc.

In the well known wire and hood types of securing device for a naturalcork or plastic mushroom-type stopper of a champagne bottle, leaking andpremature popping of stoppers often occur because of frequent distortionand breakage of the wires. Moreover, it is necessary to twist the wiresfor securing them to the bottle which is relatively slow, inefficient,and therefore expensive procedure which results in an especiallyunattractive appearance and necessitates the addition of a covering offoil to hide the wire and hood. Removing the wires from the top of thebottle is diflicult for many users and the open construction of suchstopper securing devices does not provide any covering to preventcontamination of the bottle lip and the external surfaces of thestopper.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a convenientlyapplied, hygienic and esthetically pleasing hood or cover for sealingand removably securing closure members to bottles, especially naturalcork, elastomer or plastic mushroom-type closures for bottles containingbeverages under gas pressure, and which obviates the above mentioneddifliculties.

Another object is generally to provide an improved hood for bottlestoppers.

The above and other objects, features and advantages of this inventionwill be more fully understood from the following description of theinvention considered in connection with the accompanying illustrativedrawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the neck of a bottle with amushroom-type stopper positioned therein and with the stopper-hood ofthe present invention mounted on the stopper and in position forsecuring to the neck of the bottle;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the stopperhood secured tothe neck of the bottle; and

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the hood illustrated by FIG. 2.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the neck of the bottle is ofthe usual construction and has an open end 11 which is closed by a knowntype of plastic or natural cork mushroom-type stopper 12 of the usualconstruction. Briefly described, the stopper comprises a shank 13extending downwardly from a head 14 having a dome-shaped top 15, and anoutwardly extending flange 16 provided with an outer wall surface 17which may or may not diverge outwardly in a downward direction. Flange16 overlies the outwardly extending flange 18 of the neck of the bottle.The stopper is sealed and releasably held in position in the neck of thebottle by the stopper-hood 19 of the present invention.

Hood 19 is made of a suitable bendable and substantially non-elasticsheet material, such as aluminum, and is in the form of a hollow memberhaving a bottom opening 20 through which the upper end of the neck ofthe bottle extends. The hood has an annular wall 22 which may or may nothave a straight taper that diverges outwardly from the dome-shaped top24 of the hood toward its bottom, so that the hoods can be convenientlystacked prior to being secured to the neck of the bottle in coveringrelation with the stopper.

The hood is secured to the top of the bottle by placing it over stopper12, in covering relation therewith with top 24 in contact with the topof the stopper, as illustrated by FIG. 1, and by crimping the lowermarginal edge portion 28 of the hood under the lower edge 31) of thecircumferential flange 18, of the bottle, as inFIG. 2. It is to be notedthat the hood completely encloses and seals the stopper and therebyprevents any contaminants from accumulating on the stopper or bottle lipwhich might otherwise occur. The engagement of the marginal edge portionof the hood with the flange of the bottle provides a considerableresisting force against the force of the gas pressure on stopper 12,whereby the stopper is firmly held in position in the bottle.

Provision is made for easy removal of the hood from the neck of thebottle to expose the stopper for removal thereof. More particurlarly,the top 24 of the stopperhood is provided with a separable circular pulltab 36 having circular corrugations 38 along its marginal edge. The tabhas a part 40 which is formed in the hood by scoring along laterallyspaced line 42 that extends from the tab along the top and down theannular wall 22 of the hood and along its marginal edge portion 28 tothe bottom annular end 44 of the hood. The hood is easily removed fromthe neck of the bottle by grasping tab 36, which is readily accomplishedby the users fingers, due to the provision of the corrugations 38. Thetab is then pulled toward part 40 for tearing the latter from the hood,and the remaining portions of the hood can be readily removed from thebottle.

t will be noted that the portion of the neck of the bottle below theflange 18, is of less diameter than the portion above the flange, sothat a greater annular surface is provided beneath the flange to becontacted by the lower inwardly turned portion of the hood.

While we have shown and described the perferred embodiment of theinvention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodiedotherwise than as herein specifically illustrated or described, and thatcertain changes in the form and arrangement of parts and in the specificmanner of practicing the invention may be made without departing fromthe underlying ideas or principles of this invention within the scope ofthe appended claims.

We claim:

1. In combination, a bottle having a neck formed with an outwardlyextending annular flange extending outwardly of the neck and spacedbelow the upper end of said neck, the upper end of the neck dome saidflange being of less diameter than the diameter of said flange, amushroom shaped stopper having a shank inserted into said neck of thebottle, said stopper having a head formed with an outwardly anddownwardly extending flange forming an annular under-groove surroundedby said head flange, the upper end of said neck above said neck flangeprojecting into said under-groove, said head having a central, circularraised portion inwardly of said head flange, a hood for said stopper,made of pliable, blendable sheet metal and having a central top portioncontacting the upper surface of the raised portion of said head, and afrusto-conical downwardly divergent portion extending from said topportion and engaging the top of said head flange, and an annular skirtedportion extending down from said frusto-conical portion and surroundingand contacting the outer side of said head flange and neck flange, andsaid skirted portion at its lower end having an inwardly extendingflange contacting the underside of said neck flange, said lower end ofsaid skirted portion before being bent inwardly into contact with saidunderside of said neck flange having a continuous, annular lower endedge in a plane perpendicular to the axis of said hood, said top Wall ofsaid hood having a removable part thereof separable from the remainingpart of said top wall to provide a pull tab, and said frusto-conical andskirted portions of said hood being provided With a pair of weakenedlines extending from opposite sides of said tab whereby said tab may bepulled to tear said frustoconical portion and skirted portion along saidweakened lines, for removal of the hood from the bottle and stopper.

2. A hood for a stopper of a bottle, comprising a hollow pliable,bendable, tearable sheet metal member having an upper circular centraltop wall, and a frusto-conical wall extending downwardly therefrom, askirted side wall extending down from said frusto-conical wall, and anopen bottom, said side wall having a lower annular continuous marginaledge, the lower portion of said skirted portion being bendable inwardlyfor engaging a part of said bottle to hold said stopper in said bottle,said top wall having a removable part thereof separable from theremaining parts of said top wall to provide a pull tab for removing saidhood from said botte, said frusto-conical and skirted walls being formedwith a pair of laterally References liter by the Examiner UNITED STATESPATENTS 807,519 12/05 Vietmeyer 21583 1,644,147 3/28 Wood 215-832,056,253 10/36 Carroll et al. 21583 2,081,138 5/37 Andersen et al.215-83 2,786,594 3/57 Rigolot 215-47 2,873,038 2/59 Schnier et al. 215473,066,821 12/62 Conklin 21583 X THERONE E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

A. LOUIS MONACELL, FRANKLIN T. GARRETT,

GEORGE O. RALSTON, Examiners.

2273 3 UNITED sTA'TEs PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3191.790 Dated June 29. .1965

InVentr($) 'cmroe J. Coven and Chester C lioss It; is certified thaterror appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 2, line 51, the word "dome", should read---above---.

Signed and sealed this 3rd day of October 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,J'R. ROBERT GOTISCHALK Attesting Officer- Commissionerof Patents

1. IN COMBINATION, A BOTTLE HAVING A NECK FORMED WITH AN OUTWARDLYEXTENDING ANNULAR FLANGE EXTENDING OUTWARDLY OF THE NECK AND SPACEDBELOW THE UPPER END OF SAID NECK, THE UPPER END OF THE NECK DOME SAIDFLANGE BEING OF LESS DIAMETER THAN THE DIAMETER OF SAID FLANGE, AMUSHROOM SHAPED STOPPER HAVING A SHAND INSERTED INTO SAID NECK OF THEBOTTLE, SAID STOPPER HAVING A HEAD FORMED WITH AN OUTWARDLY ANDDOWNWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGE FORMING AN ANNULAR UNDER-GROOVE SURROUNDINGBY SAID HEAD FLANGE,THE UPPER END OF SAID NECK ABOVE SAID NECK FLANGEPROJECTING INTO SAID UNDER-GROOVE, SAID HEAD HAVING A CENTRAL, CIRCULARRAISED PORTION INWARDLY OF SAID HEAD FLANGE, A HOOD FOR SAID STOPPER,MADE OF PLIABLE,BLENDABLE SHEET METAL AND HAVING A CENTRAL TOP PORTIONCONTACTING THE UPPER SURFACE OF THE RAISED PORTION OF SAID HEAD, AND AFRUSTO-CONICAL DOWNWARDLY DIVERGENT PORTION EXTENDING FROM SAID TOPPORTION AND ENGAGING THE TOP OF SAID HEAD FLANGE, AND AN ANNULAR SKIRTEDPORTION EXTENDING DOWN FROM SAID FRUSTO-CONICAL PORTION AND SURROUNDINGAND CONTACTING THE OUTER SIDE OF SAID HEADFLANGE AND NECK FLANGE, ANDSAID SKIRTED PORTION AT ITS LOWER END HAVING AN INWARDLY EXETENDINGFLANGE CONTACTING THE UNDERSIDE OF SAID NECK FLANGE, SAID LOWER END OFSAID SKIRTED PORTION BEFORE BEING BENT INWARDLY INTO CONTACT WITH SAIDUNDERSIDE OF SAID NECK FLANGE HAVING A CONTINOUS, ANNULAR LOWER END EDGEIN A PLANE PERPENDICULAR TO THE AXIS OF SAID HOOD SAID TOP WALL OF SAIDHOOD HAVING A REMOVABLE PART THEREOF SEPARABLE FROM THE REMAINING PARTOF SAID TOP WALL TO PROVIDE A PULL TAB, AND SAID FRUSTO-CONICAL ANDSKIRTED PORTIONS OF SAID HOOD BEING PORVIDED WITH A PAIR OF WEAKENEDLINES EXTENDING FROM OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID TAB WHEREBY SAID TAB MAY BEPULLED TO TEAR SAID FRUSTOCONICAL PORTION AND SKIRTED PORTION ALONG SAIDWEAKENED LINES, FOR REMOVAL OF THE HOOD FROM THE BOTTLE AND STOPPER.